Question

Scott in the USA asked:

Generally speaking, is the Sun really shrinking at a speed people should be worried about?

Answer

It's certainly shrinking because it's giving off matter into space all the time. It's known as the solar wind. But this is a tiny fraction of the mass of the Sun and it's certainly not going to evaporate off into space before it's used up all the fuel. One statistic I did hear is that it sheds one million tonnes per second. The numbers are so big that it's difficult to equate what they are, but it's the equivalent of the mass of a reasonable sized mountain per day.

&nbsp| The Naked Scientists® and Naked Science® are registered trademarks created by Dr Chris Smith.

Information presented on this website is the opinion of the individual contributors and does not reflect the general views of the administrators, editors, moderators, sponsors, Cambridge University or the public at large.